1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat-curable silicone composition, and to a light emitting diode element in which the composition is used as a protective or adhesive material, as a material for altering or adjusting the wavelength, or as a lens material.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, epoxy resins have generally been used as the sealing materials for light emitting diode elements. The use of silicone resins as materials within light emitting diode elements has also been disclosed in patent reference 1 and patent reference 2, which disclose trials using a silicone resin as a lens material, and in patent reference 3, which discloses a trial using a silicone resin as a wavelength-altering coating, but examples of the actual use of silicone resins are few.
On the other hand, with white LEDs now attracting considerable attention, problems have emerged for epoxy resin-based sealing materials, including yellowing caused by exposure to ultraviolet light or the like during actual use of the LED, and an increased propensity to cracking caused by the increase in the heating value that accompanies miniaturization. Resolving these problems has become an urgent issue. Furthermore, the above compositions include compositions in which curing proceeds via an addition reaction in the presence of a platinum catalyst, but curing-inhibiting substances within the LED can cause unsatisfactory curing of the composition.
[Patent Reference 1] JP 10-228249 A
[Patent Reference 2] JP 10-242513 A
[Patent Reference 3] JP 2000-123981 A
[Patent Reference 4] JP 11-1619 A